Waterparks

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Next up on stage was highly anticipated three-piece Waterparks, all the way from Houston, Texas. Kicking things off with ‘Hawaii (Stay Awake)’, a boisterous track off their debut record ‘Double Dare’. The boys then followed it up with ‘Blonde’, the lead single from said sophomore record ‘Entertainment’, which they had only released a week ago. These songs set the tone for what was to come; catchy guitar driven tracks, with pop undertones. These boys really know what they are doing and it showed.

Mid way through their set they played the lead single from their debut album ‘Stupid For You’, an anthemic track which frontman Awsten Knight dedicated to the vast amount of beautiful women in Australia. This particular track sent the already buzzing crowd into a frenzy!

Frontman Awsten Knight knew exactly how to keep us engaged between songs and not let our concentration wane for even a second. Most of it was just irrelevant banter but it made us laugh nonetheless. There was only one, dumb dirty joke (unintentional) about always “getting it in the wrong hole” regarding plugging in his acoustic guitar. He casually played it off it like no other bands would. He was straight-faced and serious and that made it so much funnier.

Ending their set with the acoustic ballads ‘’Lucky People’ and ’21 Questions’ was an interesting decision. These songs show a juxtaposition of genres covered in the Waterparks discography, It was a risky move to end on the acoustic tracks, however the band pulled it off when the band re-joined Knight on stage to close out ’21 Questions’.

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The Maine

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Adorned in button-up shirts, and one stylish bolo tie, The Maine took the stage and made a bang with opener ‘Black Butterflies & Déjà Vu’. The immensely popular rock song proved an amazing starting point for the set as the crowd collectively pushed forward in a wave like motion. The Maine moved with both energy and grace on stage as they poured every ounce of themselves into the music. Screaming the chorus at the top of my lungs I was sure I was about to lose my voice. And that was just the first song.

‘Am I Pretty?’ followed suit, and the entire crowd felt no hesitation as we all jumped and danced and sang along to every word that came out of John O’Callaghan’s mouth. The Maine had in the palm of their hands. The Maine had hooked us in with a string of upbeat rock songs, but it was the ambient yet still optimistic track ‘(Un) Lost’ that pulled at each and everyone’s heartstrings.

John O’Callaghan has the kind of stage presence unparalleled by anyone I’ve ever seen. It’s hard to explain just how hypnotic his energy is. Arguably the highlight of the night occurred as O’Callaghan talked to the crowd he began discussing the obscure nature of Australian sayings; Someone called out for the long-standing Australian pass time, “SHOEY” and a generous member of the crowd responded by tossing their dirty converse onto the stage. Another concertgoer threw their beer to the singer who impressively caught the open can in one hand with minimal spillage. O’Callaghan proceeded to pour the entire beer into the strangers shoe and took it down like an absolute winner. It was disgusting, but everyone loved it. The band then suitably played ‘Misery’. I imagine that is exactly what O’Callaghan was feeling after drinking from that shoe. Amazing.

The Maine really threw things back about 10 years with ‘Girls Do What They Want’, a track from their debut. It was during this track when they brought a fan on stage to sing with them. His name was Bailey and even though he looked extremely nervous, we all cheered him on to belt out the chorus! And admittedly he did an excellent job.

We arrived at the closing of the night: ‘Another Night On Mars’. A love ballad to your friends and those closest to you, it was a picture-perfect way to end the night as a whole. It takes a special kind of band to make you feel included in something bigger than yourself, and that’s exactly how  The Maine made us feel.

Thank you, The Maine.

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AMNPLIFY – DB

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